I was privileged to be asked to work with Tabitha on Investment
as her photographer, but was unsure what to expect when she
invited me to photograph her and some of those who had also
attended The Hewitt Fertility Centre at the Women’s Hospital
in Liverpool. As a clinical environment it would be a challenge.
Access to a room, the lighting and the scale of the treatment
rooms would mean working quickly and with available light. In
a situation like this there are also questions about whether the
resulting images should have a ‘documentary’ feel or be crafted
as portraits. Would it be possible to feel relaxed and comfortable
in these emotionally charged spaces?
The images that have emerged completely surpassed my
expectations and are, for me, like frozen moments in the
emotional journeys made by Tabitha, Mel and Emma; each being
at differing stages in their own journey. It was again a privilege to
be present to witness and record these moments.
Initially we had planned to make three portraits in a single
session but, sadly, Emma was unwell with an infection that made
it impossible for her to be present in person. Therefore only her
embroidered gown is shown in the same room and on the same
day. We agreed that this was a fact of life in this situation and
also said something about the fragility of the circumstances - the
uncertainties involved in the processes of assisting and nurturing
conception in a clinical setting.
Jon Barraclough, September 2014

I was privileged to be asked to work with Tabitha on Investment
as her photographer, but was unsure what to expect when she
invited me to photograph her and some of those who had also
attended The Hewitt Fertility Centre at the Women’s Hospital
in Liverpool. As a clinical environment it would be a challenge.
Access to a room, the lighting and the scale of the treatment
rooms would mean working quickly and with available light. In
a situation like this there are also questions about whether the
resulting images should have a ‘documentary’ feel or be crafted
as portraits. Would it be possible to feel relaxed and comfortable
in these emotionally charged spaces?
The images that have emerged completely surpassed my
expectations and are, for me, like frozen moments in the
emotional journeys made by Tabitha, Mel and Emma; each being
at differing stages in their own journey. It was again a privilege to
be present to witness and record these moments.
Initially we had planned to make three portraits in a single
session but, sadly, Emma was unwell with an infection that made
it impossible for her to be present in person. Therefore only her
embroidered gown is shown in the same room and on the same
day. We agreed that this was a fact of life in this situation and
also said something about the fragility of the circumstances - the
uncertainties involved in the processes of assisting and nurturing
conception in a clinical setting.
Jon Barraclough, September 2014